Gator gar

MonsterMinis

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 28, 2009
6,048
9
0
Wisconsin
subtropical... I wouldn't let them under 60 imho unless carefully monitored. they are a US Native.. but they are found in the southern states and iir most that are aquacultured for the trade come from texas.. so will be of those genetics ( I could be wrong) They would do fine in your average home temps but outdoors I would expect them to need a heater in the winter.
 

Chub_by

Redtail Catfish
MFK Member
Jan 30, 2012
4,900
792
150
Europe
South England should work.. When I lived there it did not get very cold. Where in England are you?
 

follen

Polypterus
MFK Member
Jun 30, 2008
2,029
131
96
england
I'm in the south east jus out side north London mate. My pond freezes over yearly, the last few winters have been pretty bad down here to.


Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app
 

bonesb66

Bronze Tier VIP
MFK Member
Feb 1, 2010
1,536
3
768
Birmingham
Yes we've had some very rough winters, i'm not much further north than you and we've touched -10 in the winter so i'd certainly say it's too chilly for them.

Shame like you say
 

Chub_by

Redtail Catfish
MFK Member
Jan 30, 2012
4,900
792
150
Europe
Sucks, I was in Wiltshire and my pond never really froze over, had it 3 years I think.
 

Polypterus

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Aug 17, 2005
2,839
8
68
49
Detroit
Lower temp tolerance of Gators will depend on the condition of the Gator.. You can not expect every single one to respond well in every case. If the fish is not properly prepared for a winter slow down it will not survive or do well. It is a false idea to think just because an animal survives at a certain temp in the wild that it will do OK at that temp in captivity. when you have a cold blooded animal such as a gar, conditioning for that temp reduction means much when you do lower that temp. Do not ask me how.. We are honestly still working on how to do that. I have at this point had very good success in conditioning and lowering gators to 60 F or even below but this is not a perfected science that will work in any and all cases. Special care needs to be exercised when doing these things.
 

HungDang

Piranha
MFK Member
Nov 29, 2010
2,968
70
81
Fort Worth
Lower temp tolerance of Gators will depend on the condition of the Gator.. You can not expect every single one to respond well in every case. If the fish is not properly prepared for a winter slow down it will not survive or do well. It is a false idea to think just because an animal survives at a certain temp in the wild that it will do OK at that temp in captivity. when you have a cold blooded animal such as a gar, conditioning for that temp reduction means much when you do lower that temp. Do not ask me how.. We are honestly still working on how to do that. I have at this point had very good success in conditioning and lowering gators to 60 F or even below but this is not a perfected science that will work in any and all cases. Special care needs to be exercised when doing these things.
to the OP: best answers are always from these guys so when they give you advice, try to take it!
and to add on what he mean, I say it depend on the age of the gar(I wouldn't try to do it on a YOY fish and even with fish that is less than 2 years of age since it still have some big chance of dying), how well fed it is(the fatter fish will have more chance to survive).
 
zoomed.com
hikariusa.com
aqaimports.com
Store